PASSPORT, a printed permission signed by the secretary of state of the home department of a country, which allows a subject of that country to leave it and go abroad. When he has obtained this, the bearer must have his passport signed by the minister or agent of the state to which he intends to proceed. A foreigner who wishes to leave country where he has been residing, generally obtains his passport from the minister or agent or consul of his own state. Such a document states the name, sur name, age, and profession of the bearer, describes his person. and serves as a voucher of hie character and nation, and entitles him to the protection of the au thorities of other countries through which he may pass, and which are at peace with his own. On arriving at the outports or frontier towns of a foreign state, every traveller is obliged to show his passport, which is examined by the proper autho rities before he is allowed to proceed on his journey. This ceremony is some times repeated at every garrison town which he passes on the road. Even the natives of most European states cannot travel twenty miles through their own country without being furnished with a passport.
The system of passports is old, hut it has become much more rigid and vexa tious during the last Pass ports are not required in the British Is lands and the United States of North America; and the natives of those two countries, accustomed to the freedom of unobstructed movement, find the regula tions as to passports when they travel on the continent of Europe to be rather irk some. The practice has been defended
on the plea that it prevents improper and dangerous persons from introducing or concealing themselves ; but numerous instances have proved that persons, how ever obnoxious, who have money and friends, can evade such restrictions. That every state may admit or refuse admit tance to foreigners as it thinks fit, cannot he questioned ; and in times of war es some sort of restriction may be required for the safety of the country ; but the present vexatious system of pass ports, as enforced in many European sates in time of profound peace, is use less and mischievous. It is a check upon travellers, to whom it causes much trou ble and loss of time, while the advantages supposed to result from it are at least very dubious.
It is not easy to enforce the regula tions respecting passports where rail roads have become almost the only mode of travelling ; and in Belgium an alteration has iecently been made in the passport system in consequence of the difficulty of rigidly adhering to the old regulations.